FRANKLIN TWP. – This was supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Delsea Regional High School wrestling team.

But the Crusaders aren’t like many other programs.

On Friday, a “rebuilding” Delsea squad, the No. 1 seed in the South Jersey Group 2 playoffs, took down third-seeded Highland, 38-26, to claim its fourth straight sectional title and its sixth in the last seven years.

The victory was also No. 200 for coach Greg Sawyer, who is in his 11th year.

“It was the best match it could have been, to get four South Jersey titles and his 200th win,” Delsea 120-pounder Tom Carney said.

The title also shows how far the Crusaders have come since the beginning of the year when they were humbled by an early loss to Collingswood.

“I think we felt strongly at the beginning of the year that we’d be a different team by the end of the year,” Sawyer said. “To see them actually fulfill that, get tougher as the year goes on and develop as wrestlers, it feels really good as a coach.”

Delsea (24-5) capped a run of five straight victories with a match-clinching 2-1 decision from Dom DeMarco over Sheldon Morris at 152. That made the score 38-17. The stretch included pins from John Pierson and Anthony DeMarco at 132 and 138, respectively.

“Bonus points is a big one in every match, especially in this one. We knew we had to get bonus points, and we got the job done,” Carney said.

Delsea started off with three straight victories, including a 4-3 decision from Joe Fabrizio over the Tartans’ George Duddy at 195. Fabrizio took a 4-0 lead but allowed an escape and was hit for stalling to make it 4-2. Duddy escaped one more time and tried to get a takedown at the buzzer, but Fabrizio held on for the win.

Bryan Dobzanski followed with a pin at 220. The Crusaders’ defending state champion needed just 1:30 to pin Highland’s Mark Gillis, a 20-match winner.

Highland heavyweight Zach Schafer put the Tartans on the board with a fall in 3:51 over Delsea’s Greg Halikman. Highland knotted the score at 13-13 after a major decision from Seth Henry over Nick Gaetano at 106 and a 4-3 decision from Lucas Siegfried over Delsea’s John Hassett at 113.

Carney put Delsea back up at 120, pinning Dillon Prendergast in 5:46.

“After that big loss at 113, I knew it was tied,” Carney said. “So I had to do my job for the team and get it done and get six points and that was my goal.”

Carney’s win snapped a run of three victories by Highland.

“It was huge for us, after we (lost) at heavyweight, we needed someone to pick it back up and get the momentum going our way again, and some of the lighter weights did the job,” Sawyer said.

Delsea will now travel to Toms River North High School’s Pine Belt Arena on Sunday for the State Group Championships. The Crusaders will wrestle in the state semifinal at 12:30, a win there and they would go to the 6 p.m. state final.

“We’ve already wrestled the best up there, so we’re not afraid of anything,” Sawyer said. “Whoever steps on the mat, we’ll wrestle tough.”

Highland, which has enjoyed a resurgence this season and was seeking its first sectional title since 1996, fell to 22-3.

“Too many pins,” Highland coach Mike Davidson said. “You give up pins, you take yourself out of the match, and you don’t give yourself a chance to win.”

Delsea 38, Highland 26

• Wrestler of the match:

Delsea’s Tom Carney pinned Dillon Prendergast in a crucial spot for the Crusaders to steal back the momentum.

• Bout of the match:

Delsea’s Joe Fabrizio held on for a 4-3 decision over Highland’s George Duddy at 195 pounds in one of the biggest swing bouts of the night.